


Warmth in the Tundra

by ficsated



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Cold Weather, F/F, Meet the Family, Post-Finale, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-03
Updated: 2016-01-04
Packaged: 2018-05-11 08:25:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,468
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5620090
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ficsated/pseuds/ficsated
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Korra brings Asami to visit her parents in the Southern Water Tribe. Tonraq and Senna soon learn about their relationship and welcome Asami with love and support.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote the first three chapters of this a while ago and posted them on Tumblr, but I'm moving them here so that I can present it as a single, multi-chapter work. I plan on writing more sometime soon.

 Asami hugged herself as she stepped off of the ship, her breath clouding in front of her from the cold. She had visited the Southern Water Tribe with Korra before, of course, but every time, the icy air hit her like a slap in the face.

Korra reached for her gloved hand, and a shiver that had nothing to do with the temperature ran through her body. The engineer had always liked Korra’s parents and believed the feeling was mutual, but she wasn’t sure how they would feel about her this time around. The avatar had told her parents in her letter that she was bringing a “special friend” home to meet them, but Asami might not be who they had in mind.

Asami had gotten to know Tonraq better when Korra had asked her to take him to a healer. It was clear from their conversation that his relationship with Korra was built on love and mutual respect, and she had told him that the avatar was lucky to have such a caring father. She remembered feeling hollow inside when she thought of her _own_ father, a feeling that had returned after his death and tormented her when she was alone.

Senna had always been kind to her daughter’s friends from Team Avatar. When she visited Republic City after Korra’s injury, she had pulled Asami aside to talk to her and thanked the young engineer for being so patient and caring with Korra. Asami insisted that she didn’t mind and admired Korra’s self-sacrifice, but she decided not to mention that seeing Korra collapsed on the ground, her glowing eyes blinded by pain, had made her realize just how much Korra meant to her, or how terrified she was of losing her.

Korra wrapped her arms around her girlfriend’s waist, sensing her unease, and pulled her into a tight embrace. “Don’t worry,” she insisted. “I’m sure they’ll love you.” She stood on her toes to kiss Asami on the cheek. The nonbender did feel a little reassured - after all, what she cared most about was how _Korra_ felt.

They took their time strolling through the Southern Water Tribe, walking alongside Naga instead of riding her. The polar bear dog was clearly delighted to be home and eagerly ran around, jumping in the snow and stretching her legs after the cramped journey. She paid little notice to the luggage tied to her saddle. Several of the people they passed greeted Korra warmly. Worried about the gossip they might cause, Asami started to let go of Korra’s hand, but the avatar held onto her. “It’s not like Republic City here - we don’t have to worry about ending up on the front page of the paper. Besides, this is my home and we shouldn’t have to hide.” It felt refreshing, in a way: the couple had grown so used to downplaying their relationship in public, she had almost forgotten what it felt like to be free of the Republic City paparazzi.

A smile spread across Korra’s face when they reached her house. Naga ran ahead of them, barking happily and sniffing around the doorway. Whoever was inside must have noticed because the front door opened and Naga immediately jumped on her greeter. “Korra!” a familiar deep face called, laughing. “Yes, good to see you too, Naga!”

A smaller figure sidestepped the commotion and ran down the front steps to greet them. Korra leapt forward too, pulling Asami with her. “It’s so good to see you, sweetie!” Senna told her daughter, wrapping her arms around her and kissing her on the forehead.

“It’s good to home, Mom,” Korra responded. She noticed Asami standing shyly next to her, but Tonraq caught up to them before she could say anything.

“There’s my girl!” He pulled his daughter into a tight hug.

Korra embraced him, then pulled away to put her hand around Asami’s shoulders. “Mom, Dad…. You know Asami.” The engineer raised an eyebrow at her girlfriend, who, despite her bravado earlier, had grown stiff and seemed to be at a loss for words. “She and I… Well, we think it’s important that you know… Ummm…”

Surprisingly, Asami found that she herself was the composed one. “Korra and I - we’re together,” she stated bluntly.

Senna understood instantly and rushed forward to hug the young businesswoman. Tonraq took a second, then went, “Oh, so _you’re_ the special friend she mentioned.”

“Well, maybe ‘friend’ isn’t quite the right word,” admitted Korra. All of the nonbender’s nervousness from earlier suddenly returned as she waited to see how he reacted.

Suddenly, she found herself swept off her feet in a bear hug. “That’s wonderful!” he told her. Asami couldn’t help but break into a huge grin. _It was okay,_ she told herself, _it was more than okay_.

The four of them headed into the warm house, Korra leading the way. “Mmm, something smells amazing!” she called out, immediately heading off to investigate what traditional Water Tribe food awaited them. Tonraq stopped Asami in the doorway, putting his hand on her shoulder, and for a second, she froze.

“Welcome to our home, Asami,” he told her. “We’re delighted to have you.”

Despite the snow outside, she felt warmer than she had in a long time.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asami’s first night staying with Korra’s family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, something I wrote a while ago (although I edited it a little). Hope you enjoy!

Asami didn’t recognize half of the traditional Water Tribe dishes put in front of her, but that didn't matter. Everything was warm and delicious, and she was more focused on Korra’s parents sitting across from her. Both of them managed to be strong and gentle at the same time, a characteristic that Korra had certainly grown into as well.

They eagerly asked about Asami’s plans to rebuild and expand Republic City’s infrastructure. She found her apprehension melting away as she joked with Korra about how she had to rebuild Future Industries Tower after _someone_ created a spirit portal where it once stood and relayed to her parents just how the avatar had emerged calmly from the portal with an arm around the dictator who had nearly destroyed the city.

“I’m so glad you were both okay!” said Senna. “With the amount of destruction going on, I’m amazed no one was hurt!”

Asami swallowed too quickly, her tea searing her throat. She looked down at her lap.

“Actually,” Korra reached for her girlfriend’s hand under the table, her voice softer and quieter than it had been a minute ago, “Asami’s father sacrificed himself to break through Kuvira’s defenses. His final act was selfless and brave, and I couldn’t have gotten into the Colossus without him.” Tonraq opened his mouth to ask something - Asami guessed Korra had previously told them about her complicated relationship with her father - but Senna gently elbowed him in the stomach.

“I’m sorry to hear that, Asami,” Korra’s mother told her, and the engineer could tell from the sadness in her eyes that she truly meant it.

Korra did her best to change the change the subject by reminiscing about Varrick and Zhu Li’s wedding. Asami gave her hand a squeeze of thanks, and the conversation moved on.

Both women thanked Senna profusely for the amazing meal and helped clean up afterwards, but Asami couldn’t hold back her exhaustion as she collected up the plates. A minute later, she noticed Korra stretching her arms out in a huge yawn, rocking forward onto her toes, her mouth wide open. “You girls have had a long journey,” remarked Tonraq. We’ll take care of all this - you two should get ready for bed.“

Korra turned to protest, her hand running through her hair in the way Asami knew she only did when she was exhausted, but she gave up when he put his hand on her shoulder. "Thanks, Dad,” she told him.

Asami searched through the outside pocket of her suitcase - Korra had insisted that she should just bring one - to grab her toothbrush and nightgown. She headed into the bathroom and noticed as she washed off her makeup that she really did look as exhausted as she felt.

When she emerged, Senna directed her to the spare bedroom. She hadn’t actually thought about where she would be sleeping: she and Korra had grown so used to staying the night at each other’s places that she assumed they’d room together, but now that she thought about it, of course Korra’s parents wouldn’t want to draw that conclusion. They didn’t even know that she was the one coming until today, and she was _not_ about to start a conversation about just how close she had grown to their daughter.

Senna mistook her silence for disappointment at the room and looked embarrassed. “I’m sorry,” she said, “It’s probably nothing like where you live.”

“No, no, it’s wonderful!” she quickly responded. It was smaller than she was used to, but it looked cozy, and Asami smiled at the sight of the blue bed. “It looks comfortable and warm, and I’m glad to be here.”

“We’re glad to have you,” the older woman told her, with a smile wide enough to crinkle the corners of her eyes. Down the hall, she saw Korra hugging her father goodnight, then walking towards them. “Goodnight, sweetie,” Senna told her daughter. “It’s good to have you back.”

“Thanks, Mom. It’s good to be home.” Korra embraced her, then watched her her retreat down the hall.

She and Asami looked at each other. “I told you they’d love you,” the avatar said, a sly smile creeping up at the corners of her mouth.

The nonbender smiled, pulling her girlfriend into a hug. “Thanks for bringing me here. It… It means a lot.”

Korra pulled back from against Asami’s chest to place a quick peck on her lips. “Of course!” She glanced at the two bedrooms. “Sorry about the room situation, though. Of course, if you _want_ ,” she was suddenly staring at the ground, her face warm, “you could… stay in my room.”

She wanted to. The avatar looked impossibly adorable in her tank top and messy bob. Oh, did she want to. But Asami couldn’t shake the mental image of an angry Tonraq, one who could probably kill an arctic wolf with his bare hands, coming after her if she threatened to corrupt his daughter. So instead, she reluctantly told her, “I think I’d better be on my best behavior for tonight. Still testing the waters, you know.”

Korra gave her an understanding nod. “Well, if you get cold, or lonely, you know where to find me. And thanks,” she said, leaning up to kiss Asami on the cheek.

“For what?”

“For being so likeable!” And with that, Korra slipped through her door, gently closing the door behind her. Asami smiled, watching her go, then turned back to her own room. She sank into the bed, barely able to stay awake long enough to climb under the layers of blankets and furs.

 

* * *

 

 

This wasn’t the first time that a scream of terror from down the hall woke Senna up. Her heart ached when she remembered that Korra still suffered from the occasional nightmare, but she had calmed her down from them so many times now that her response was automatic. She slipped out of bed, careful not to stir her husband, and slowly opened the door… only to see a figure in a lilac nightgown darting down the hall, quietly calling out, “Shh, Korra, it’s okay!” Senna froze, deliberating for a moment, then decided it was best to return to bed without saying anything. Someone had beaten her there, and it seemed to her like the situation was under control, so she gently shut her door and slipped back into bed.

 

* * *

 

Asami knew Korra’s nightmare scream all too well. She bolted upright in bed, swung her legs over the side, and made her way, fumbling in the dark, to the hallway. She could tell which room was Korra’s from the cracks of light around the door’s edges. “Shh, Korra, it’s okay!” she tried to say quietly enough not to wake anyone else.

Korra sat upright in her bed, her chest heaving beneath her white tank top as she tried to catch her breath. Asami sprinted to the side of the bed and knelt by her, taking her hand. “Are you alright?”

“Asami!” Korra sighed with relief, then began to compose herself. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you! It was just a nightmare.”

“Do you want to talk about it?” the other woman asked. Korra nodded shakily, and Asami sat down on the other side of the bed.

“It was dark and cold, and you were there but then something took you away, and I couldn’t find you. I thought I’d lost you, Asami.” The engineer pulled Korra towards her so that her head rested in her lap and began running her hands through her soft, short hair.

“It’s okay, It’s all okay now.” Asami murmured softly, feeling Korra relax at her touch. “I’m here with you, and I don’t plan on leaving anytime soon.”

Korra glanced up at her. “Hey, ‘Sami?” she asked, her voice suddenly small. “Could you stay with me?”

“Of course,” the older girl replied, leaning down to kiss Korra’s forehead.

The avatar laughed as Asami’s dark hair tickled her face. “You’re not worried about my parents?”

“Well, I _AM_ a little scared at the idea of an angry Tonraq, but right now this matters more to me. You’ll just have to kick me out early in the morning so I can pretend I wasn’t here. I don’t really fancy being chased by a homicidal waterbending warrior in nothing but my pajamas.”

Korra snuggled up against Asami’s chest, her head nestled against the other girl’s neck, and giggled at the mental image. “You could hop on Naga to make a quick getaway!”

“Right.” Asami was laughing too now. “I could live in the icy tundra, hunting for food and riding a polar bear dog. Look out, Bolin, Nuktuk’s gonna have some competition once Varrick hears this idea! Okay if I turn off the light?” Korra nodded, and Asami leaned over to flip the switch on the lamp before wrapping her arms around Korra’s waist.

“Thanks again,” the avatar mumbled into her girlfriend’s chest.

“For staying? It’s fine! I’d rather be with you anyway, and it’s much warmer in this room.”

“No. Well, yes, but not just for that. Thanks for coming. It means a lot to me that you’re making an effort to get to know my family better. I know it’s hard for you to take time off from running Future Industries.” She reached up to cup Asami’s face and pull it down to her own, leaning in for one long kiss.

“Anything for you,” the other girl replied once they broke apart. They stayed like that, snuggled together under the thick blankets, until both women fell asleep.


End file.
